I have a bunch of retail bags with plastic or twine handles. For the ones that are paper (e.g. Starbucks take-away bags) I just rip off the handles and put them in mixed paper. But there are some (e.g. Sephora) that appear to be cardboard with a very shiny branded exterior. My gut says they aren’t suitable for mixed paper recycling. And one can only re-use a few of them as “gift bags”. Any ideas? Would thrift stores be interested in them?
DAVID L STEINER
1 year ago
Are clear glass vases considered the same as glass bottles?
John
1 year ago
Hello. I have a plant based fiber bowl with some left over food grease on it (beans, rice, chicken, spinach) and I was wondering if this is still recyclable? Should I wash it with soap or just rinse with water? Does it get recycled with the cardboard? Any help is appreciated.
John
1 year ago
Hello. I have 2 items.
Empty Popcorn bag (butter, no butter)
Plastic Film the popcorn bag is wrapped in prior to microwaving the bag
Stephanie Frazier
1 year ago
Does anyone accept plastics used in nonfood items like hangers, Christmas light / string light keeper, plastic totes etc. Thank you!
Wes
1 year ago
Is there a local place to recycle non-woven polypropylene bags?
Mina
1 year ago
Not a suggestion for an item, but for the website. I think it would be helpful to be able to filter items on the homepage by whether or not they are recyclable. Its surprising how many items are not curbside recyclable, and I think being able to filter your search by recyclable/not recyclable would not only be helpful but add some shock value as well
Peter
1 year ago
Clothes, please.
Stephanie
1 year ago
Looking to recycle old tents – no longer rain proof
Alicia
1 year ago
Is there any place to “recycle” bad/used cooking oils?
Lara
1 year ago
What’s the best thing to do with a couch? We just don’t have the space for a couch anymore. But this one is worn (tho very comfortable), but because it looks so bad (tho completely sanitary), we cannot get anyone to take it. I have offered it for free in Buy Nothing, Facebook marketplace, Craigslist, FreeCycle, with no takers.
Follow up: We could find no one interested in the couch. A friend suggested it would be more valuable broken into it’s component pieces. After a few hours of work of deconstructing the couch, it already took up less space in a stack. We tossed some of the internal fabric that was dirty/cheap and not reusable, as well as some cardboard and some of the cheap wood with lots of staples. But the leather, and all the cushioning was fairly quickly claimed by a couple friends that craft and make costumes and custom furniture.
Katie
1 year ago
Hello! Does anyone know of a place which takes paint cans (still filled with paint)? I thought I saw a post about this in the past, but can’t find it now.
These are scrap metal, and recyclers will pay you (a tiny amount) for any scrap metal. I’ve used AAA Scrap Iron & Metal in Pgh’s Strip District (3311 Penn Ave). There’s a different rate for metals that react to a magnet vs those that don’t, so it’s best to separate them. (On my first visit, they gave me a little keychain magnet with their name and address on it, but any fridge magnet should be good enough.) They also take things like old metal pans that have non-metal parts like handles. Plus cans, tins, bottle caps, etc. This was the… Read more »
Not in curbside recycling. This would be considered scrap metal. Three places you can take them: Castriota Metals and Recycling: (412.431.1832, 92 Crane Ave, 15226) Even though their website says no freon appliances, RTP has checked with Castriota’s Crave Ave location. They may even pay you for it (very small amounts per pound:) Michael Bros. Hauling: They accept (and even pay for) scrap metal their location at 901 Horning Rd. 15236. Their drop-off is a drive through. Westmoreland Cleanways Recycling Center: This recycling center is an hour outside Pittsburgh and offers recycling options for a number of hard-to-recycle items. They… Read more »
Mo Dawley
1 year ago
Can old photographs be recycled as shredded material? or in mixed paper recycling
Michael Brothers now takes all plastics #1 – #6, and you only have to separate the #1s and #2s. The only photos I can find of the bins are on Yelp (link below) and they’re blurry. But there are multiple bins labeled with #s and pictures of what’s accepted.
I believe last time I was there, I saw that they take #1 (not that the clear clamshell containers must be separated from other #1’s. They take #2, again separated from the #1’s. And I believe they take #3 through #7 (not just 3-6). Someone may have updated information, but I was there in April.
Interesting. We’ll look into it again. It’s possible that the #3-#7 is just a catchall to keep folks from putting it in #1 and #2 bins. We’ve not heard of a #3 recycling program before and #7 is literally a catch all for all kinds of “other” plastic, so it makes us very curious where those collections are being sent that they could have such a diverse mix of plastic materials that are almost never recycled elsewhere…
Mari
1 year ago
How to recycle an instant pot and how much will it cost (16lb)?
I have a helium tank i bought at Sam’s club. It’s empty and i did everything instructed to dispose of it properly but where can i take it to be recycled?
I have one that is partially full and I couldn’t find any takers on Freecycle etc. Don’t want to just release the helium and then throw the tank into scrap metal.
Hi are aluminum takeout containers accepted after washing? They’re not as thin as foil so my gut says yes but I want to make sure. Here is an example image (I think – not exactly familiar with this site!)
I have a bunch of retail bags with plastic or twine handles. For the ones that are paper (e.g. Starbucks take-away bags) I just rip off the handles and put them in mixed paper. But there are some (e.g. Sephora) that appear to be cardboard with a very shiny branded exterior. My gut says they aren’t suitable for mixed paper recycling. And one can only re-use a few of them as “gift bags”. Any ideas? Would thrift stores be interested in them?
Are clear glass vases considered the same as glass bottles?
Hello. I have a plant based fiber bowl with some left over food grease on it (beans, rice, chicken, spinach) and I was wondering if this is still recyclable? Should I wash it with soap or just rinse with water? Does it get recycled with the cardboard? Any help is appreciated.
Hello. I have 2 items.
Does anyone accept plastics used in nonfood items like hangers, Christmas light / string light keeper, plastic totes etc. Thank you!
Is there a local place to recycle non-woven polypropylene bags?
Not a suggestion for an item, but for the website. I think it would be helpful to be able to filter items on the homepage by whether or not they are recyclable. Its surprising how many items are not curbside recyclable, and I think being able to filter your search by recyclable/not recyclable would not only be helpful but add some shock value as well
Clothes, please.
Looking to recycle old tents – no longer rain proof
Is there any place to “recycle” bad/used cooking oils?
What’s the best thing to do with a couch? We just don’t have the space for a couch anymore. But this one is worn (tho very comfortable), but because it looks so bad (tho completely sanitary), we cannot get anyone to take it. I have offered it for free in Buy Nothing, Facebook marketplace, Craigslist, FreeCycle, with no takers.
Seems it needs to be recycled. Any idea how?
Follow up: We could find no one interested in the couch. A friend suggested it would be more valuable broken into it’s component pieces. After a few hours of work of deconstructing the couch, it already took up less space in a stack. We tossed some of the internal fabric that was dirty/cheap and not reusable, as well as some cardboard and some of the cheap wood with lots of staples. But the leather, and all the cushioning was fairly quickly claimed by a couple friends that craft and make costumes and custom furniture.
Hello! Does anyone know of a place which takes paint cans (still filled with paint)? I thought I saw a post about this in the past, but can’t find it now.
What can we do with old keys?
These are scrap metal, and recyclers will pay you (a tiny amount) for any scrap metal. I’ve used AAA Scrap Iron & Metal in Pgh’s Strip District (3311 Penn Ave). There’s a different rate for metals that react to a magnet vs those that don’t, so it’s best to separate them. (On my first visit, they gave me a little keychain magnet with their name and address on it, but any fridge magnet should be good enough.) They also take things like old metal pans that have non-metal parts like handles. Plus cans, tins, bottle caps, etc. This was the… Read more »
How can we dispose of water pitcher filters?
Can the city of Pitttsburgh recycle wire hangers?
Not in curbside recycling. This would be considered scrap metal. Three places you can take them: Castriota Metals and Recycling: (412.431.1832, 92 Crane Ave, 15226) Even though their website says no freon appliances, RTP has checked with Castriota’s Crave Ave location. They may even pay you for it (very small amounts per pound:) Michael Bros. Hauling: They accept (and even pay for) scrap metal their location at 901 Horning Rd. 15236. Their drop-off is a drive through. Westmoreland Cleanways Recycling Center: This recycling center is an hour outside Pittsburgh and offers recycling options for a number of hard-to-recycle items. They… Read more »
Can old photographs be recycled as shredded material? or in mixed paper recycling
Michael Brothers now takes all plastics #1 – #6, and you only have to separate the #1s and #2s. The only photos I can find of the bins are on Yelp (link below) and they’re blurry. But there are multiple bins labeled with #s and pictures of what’s accepted.
Thanks for the tip, Melanie! We’ll work to update the relevant entries!
I believe last time I was there, I saw that they take #1 (not that the clear clamshell containers must be separated from other #1’s. They take #2, again separated from the #1’s. And I believe they take #3 through #7 (not just 3-6). Someone may have updated information, but I was there in April.
Interesting. We’ll look into it again. It’s possible that the #3-#7 is just a catchall to keep folks from putting it in #1 and #2 bins. We’ve not heard of a #3 recycling program before and #7 is literally a catch all for all kinds of “other” plastic, so it makes us very curious where those collections are being sent that they could have such a diverse mix of plastic materials that are almost never recycled elsewhere…
How to recycle an instant pot and how much will it cost (16lb)?
The city’s ewaste recycling program will take it https://prc.org/ewastepgh/.
I have a helium tank i bought at Sam’s club. It’s empty and i did everything instructed to dispose of it properly but where can i take it to be recycled?
I have one that is partially full and I couldn’t find any takers on Freecycle etc. Don’t want to just release the helium and then throw the tank into scrap metal.
Hi are aluminum takeout containers accepted after washing? They’re not as thin as foil so my gut says yes but I want to make sure. Here is an example image (I think – not exactly familiar with this site!)
When in doubt, throw it out. They are not accepted curbside. You can take them to scrap metal locations like Michael Bros.